The people set a record

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33068, 8 November 1972, Page 1

The people set a record

(By

D. D. L. BORMAN)

It has been said before that racing is the sport of kings, trotting the sport of the people; but it bears saying again after yesterday when the sixty-ninth New Zealand Trotting Gup was run at Addington Raceway.

Men, women and children—2o,29s of them—taxed transport services to get to Addington and they, children excepted, spent their money as though they had not heard politicians talkihg.

With the help of a number of visitors from Australia, the crowd which would have had representatives of . most places in New Zealand put $586,675 through the totalisator to give the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club a record for a New Zealand trotting meeting.

The money wagered was $19,588 more than last year, and topped the previous record of $579,546 which was bet on the last day of the 1971 Inter-Dominion Championship series at Addington. This was achieved in spite of the fact that yesterday was not one for favourites. The meeting opened with a win dividend of more than $35, and for the rest of the day there were only two winners which paid less than double figures to win. But there must have still been plenty of money to go round.

Off the course, the financial picture was not so rosy. Investments with the Totalisator Agency Board dropped by 525,295.50 to $545,540.50.

Only once every few years does the Melbourne Cup compete with the Trotting Cup for the off-course betters' money. It would seem that yesterday the conflict did neither, any good, because New Zealand T.A.B. betting on “the” race of Australia dropped by $73,952. The cup race itself attracted $476,524.50 in bets, $263,094.50 of it being on the double. For 150,000 New Zealanders Cup day began in Dunedin where “Elsie,” the computer which normally draws the winners of bonus bonds, drew 14 tickets in the second major sweepstake to be run in New Zealand. Just after the horses for the big two-mile race had left the birdcage the Minister of Internal Affairs (Mr Highet) drew from a barrel the numbers of horses to match the tickets.

Hopes of another Christchurch win—the New Zealand Cup sweepstake at Riccarton on Saturday was won by a ticket with a Christchurch address—ran high.

Two of the runners were held by Christchurch tickets, another by a nearby Hawarden resident, and whoever held “Just in Time” in Christchurch must have been mightily pleased with Rauka Lad, which was the favourite. It was not to be the time, however. Rauka Lad met interference in the race and fin-

ished fifth. It earned only $l5OO for its holder as an also ran, as did Jacquinot Bay for the Hawarden, ticket and Wag for another Christchurch ticket.

N.I. winners

North Island sweepstake investors took all the major prizes, with “Yvonne and Mum syndicate" of Turangi becoming richer by $200,000 and causing speculation on Yvonne’s age and marital status.

While North Islanders took the sweepstake prizes, the race prizes went to a Christchurch man, Mr S. J. Wheatley and his trainer, J. A. Carmichael, of Templeton. Globe Bay had a charmed run, to use another phrase which is not new, to win the richest race to be run in New Zealand so far, galloping or trotting. The stake was $40,000, from which Mr Wheatley received $24,000 and a trophy valued at $3OO. Globe Bay more than fulfilled an ambition for his owner, who has been a keen trotting supporter, an owner and a breeder. His ambition has always been just to have a pacer eligible for the cup. To win the cup was a pipedream.

The six-year-old son of the 1954 Cup winner and crowdpleaser. Johnny Globe, gave Carmichael, his trainerdriver, his first win in the

race and his biggest. He gave his steady followers their best win for a long time, by paying $lB.BO to win.

Globe Bay’s stake winnings rose to $57,825, and have been achieved by 15 wins and 20 placings. He was “educated" and did his early racing from D. G. Nyhan’s stable near Carmichael’s, but went to Carmichael early in his career. Only once since has Carmichael not driven him in a race.

That was at Motukarara, when Carmichael had to go to Forbury Park. D. G. Jones drove Globe Bay, which was nosed out of first by Rauka Lad. Visitors to the city for Carnival Week must wonder about the Christchurch weather. They shivered at Riccarton on Saturday for the gallops, sweltered at Addington for the trots. It was a day that demanded shirt-sleeves for men—the most sensible were those in shorts—cool clothing for women—they seemed to achieve this by mini-mini skirts, hot pants, and the occasional light-weight maxi. It also demanded thirstquenching and if the bars did not do a record trade to add to a day of financial record, it was only because they were not big enough. (List of prize-winners. Page 3.)